In a recent report, analytics firm Similarweb reveals that OpenAI’s ChatGPT, the renowned artificial intelligence chatbot, experienced a gradual decline in monthly website visits over the past three months. However, there are promising signs that this decline may be tapering off, with the return of students to school potentially playing a key role in this stabilisation.
ChatGPT: Ongoing traffic decline
During the month of August, worldwide desktop and mobile visits to the ChatGPT website decreased by 3.2 percent, totaling 1.43 billion. This drop followed approximately 10 percent declines in website visits in both June and July. The duration of time spent by visitors on the platform has also seen a consistent monthly decrease since March, plummeting from an average of 8.7 minutes per session to 7 minutes in August.
Silver lining
Despite these challenges, there is a glimmer of hope. In August, the number of unique visitors worldwide edged up slightly to 180.5 million users from the previous 180 million.
The impending return of students to school in September could serve as a catalyst for ChatGPT’s traffic and usage, particularly as some educational institutions have begun integrating the chatbot into their curriculum. In August, ChatGPT witnessed a modest surge in traffic within the United States, which aligns with the commencement of the academic year.
David F. Carr, an analyst at Similarweb who closely monitors ChatGPT and its competitors, suggests that the demand for homework assistance may be a driving force behind these developments. He notes that the percentage of younger users on the platform decreased over the summer but is now showing signs of a resurgence.
ChatGPT burst onto the scene as a game-changer, revolutionising daily tasks such as editing and coding. Within just two months of its November 2022 launch, it garnered 100 million monthly active users, utilising generative AI technology to create content based on historical data, including essays and poems.
Prior to the launch of Meta’s Threads, ChatGPT held the distinction of being the fastest-growing consumer application ever and presently ranks among the top 30 websites globally.
Rising competition
In addition to ChatGPT, several competitors have entered the market this year, including Google’s Bard chatbot. Microsoft’s Bing search engine also offers a ChatGPT-powered chatbot for free.
OpenAI expanded its reach further by launching the ChatGPT app on the iOS platform in May, potentially contributing to the reduction in website traffic. While ChatGPT remains accessible for free, it also offers a premium subscription for $20 per month.
OpenAI’s revenue streams extend beyond ChatGPT through the provision of access to its AI models for developers and enterprises, both directly and through a strategic partnership with Microsoft, which invested over $10 billion into the company.
